Learning outcomes.
What students will have acquired by the end of the five-year Integrated Master's in Environmental Sciences and Engineering — theoretical, analytical, linguistic, communicative, and academic.
The five outcomes below are the framework against which the programme is designed, taught, and evaluated. Each unpacks what the outcome means in practice, and where in the curriculum it is built.
Theoretical knowledge.
Graduates will have acquired solid theoretical knowledge in all key areas of Environmental Sciences and Environmental Engineering. The programme is delivered jointly by five Schools — Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Mechanical Engineering, and Agriculture — and the curriculum is structured so that no student leaves with gaps in any of the foundational fields.
The first two years build the scientific foundations: classical and modern physics, general and physical chemistry, principles of biology and ecology, mathematics through multivariable calculus, and programming. The middle years move from foundations to environmental systems: earth sciences, environmental chemistry, atmospheric physics, climate, ecosystems, energy systems, and the policy frameworks that connect them. The applied years bring the engineering side — air quality, waste management, environmental impact assessment, agricultural valorisation, urban energy.
| Area | Where |
|---|---|
| Physics | Physics I and II, Atmospheric Physics, Physics of Climate Change |
| Chemistry | General Chemistry, Physical and Analytical Chemistry, Environmental Chemistry |
| Biology | Principles of Biology, Ecology, Animals and Plants, Ecosystem Dynamics |
| Earth sciences | Earth Sciences, Remote Sensing of the Environment |
| Engineering | Chemical and Biochemical Processes, Environmental Engineering, Industrial Process Design |
| Energy | Energy Systems and Environment, Energy Systems in the Urban Environment |
| Climate change | Atmospheric Physics and Climate, Physics of Climate Change, Climate Change Mitigation |
| Sustainable development | Bioeconomy, Circular Economy and Environmental Economics, Environmental Policy |
Quantitative and analytical skills.
Graduates will have developed skills of quantitative analysis: the ability to read complex scientific and technical texts with confidence, and to analyse and synthesise data, experimental results, and models of environmental systems.
The toolkit is built across the curriculum. Mathematics I and II cover calculus, linear algebra, vector fields and differential equations. Programming (Python) introduces the language used most widely in environmental data work. Applied Mathematics with Programming and Introduction to Data Analysis cover numerical methods, statistical reasoning, regression, and an introduction to machine learning. Across the laboratory and project work that runs through the five years, these tools are applied to real environmental data — atmospheric measurements, soil samples, ecosystem inventories, remote-sensing imagery.
Scientific discourse and language.
Graduates will have developed familiarity with the multiple linguistic and scientific aspects of environmental scientific discourse. The programme is delivered in English, and graduates leave fluent in the technical vocabulary, the conventions of scientific writing, and the rhetorical forms that international research and policy work require.
The English-language delivery means that, from the first semester, students read primary literature, follow lectures, write assignments, and present research in the language of international science. This is not an add-on — it is the default language of the entire programme.
Beyond English, students can also attend Greek-language courses at AUTH's School of Modern Greek, which has run language teaching for international students for decades. Greek is not required to study or graduate, but the option is available for students who want to integrate more fully into Greek life or who plan to continue working in Greece after graduation.
Communication and academic practice.
Graduates will have developed intercultural communication skills, oral presentation, group work, and written scientific documentation, in line with international academic standards.
These are practised throughout the programme rather than taught in isolation. Group projects in laboratory and applied courses build collaborative working habits. Course presentations and lab reports build the ability to communicate technical content clearly. The Diploma Thesis — written, defended, and submitted under formal academic conventions — is the culmination of this work, and students leave knowing how to structure and present scientific arguments in the forms expected by academic publishers, professional bodies, and research funders.
Because the cohort is small (24–40 students per year) and international, daily work happens across language and disciplinary backgrounds. Intercultural communication is not a module — it is the working environment.
What this opens up.
Graduates leave with the ability to continue to doctoral study, or to pursue further postgraduate study, and to access scientific and technical professions in Greece and abroad on the terms set by national regulation in each country.
The Integrated Master's is a five-year, 300-ECTS qualification — equivalent in scope to a bachelor's degree plus a master's degree combined into a single integrated programme. Internationally, this is recognised as a Level-7 qualification in the European Qualifications Framework, which is the entry level for doctoral programmes in most countries.
The programme is new, and the first cohort has not yet graduated. The pathways above describe what the qualification opens up; the network of alumni, professional contacts, and specific employment patterns will develop over the coming years.